CONTAMINATION DEFCON 4 - South County Times

CONTAMINATION DEFCON 4:
Pop culture fans flock to South County Holiday Inn for weekend of horror, sci-fi

by Holly Shanks

South County Times - August 09, 2013

From left: Jamie Lamman, zombie; Trizia Schaefer, a character from "Motel Hell;" Josh Buechler as Melting Man; Steven Hanna wields a chainsaw; and Lauren Halvorson as Harley Quinn from the Batman series. photos by Diana Linsley

Michelle Benz as super villain Harley Quinn, from the animated and movie Batman series, and Michael Harbin as Batman's nemesis, the Joker.

From left: Chris McQuillen as a character from the "Zod" video game series; Lauren Nix from the "Halo" video game series; and Michael Walker of South County as Hunk from the video game series "Resident Evil."

Jurassic Park raptor Jef Miller takes time out from terrorizing convention attendees to pose for the camera.

The South County Holiday Inn was the hot spot this past weekend for horror movie and pop culture fans. Contamination Defcon 4, a sci-fi, horror genre convention featuring celebrities and merchandise vendors, drew a diverse crowd during the three-day event.

The convention rooms were jam-packed with cult classic enthusiast of all ages. Some attendees passionately mimicked their favorite characters by dressing up. The costume-clad fans mingled, splattered with fake blood, drooping rotted zombie skin, chainsaws in place of hands and faces - all creatively concealed behind a mayhem of make-up.

An array of items including artwork, scale character models, books, posters and T-shirts were only a sampling of things available for the novice to the avid collector. One of the main attractions for fans was the chance to meet actors, directors, writers or special effects people who brought their beloved creatures, slashers and monsters to life.

Among the many featured celebrities in attendance were names such as David Naughton, the actor who turned from man to beast in "An American Werewolf in London;" Kane Hodder, the man behind the mask as "Jason" in several installments of the "Friday the 13th" movie series; and Theodus Crane, a cast member from AMC's current award-winning popular zombie-laden TV series "The Walking Dead."

Crane traveled from New Orleans to meet local fans and offered some thoughts about genre conventions.

"I think it's part escapism. If you really enjoy watching a show ... and you find out (the actors) are coming to town it's like a treat for yourself," Crane said. "You get to experience something you wouldn't normally get to do."



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